Refugee Vigil - Melbourne, Speaker: Michael Pierce
The Refugee Action Collective (RAC) held a vigil on Monday, 26 October, at 5.30pm at Federation Square, Melbourne to demand fair treatment of refugees risking their lives to come to Australia by boat while escaping from war-torn countries.
They also demanded that refugees be processed on the Australian mainland and provided with a safe haven when they arrive.
The vigil was supported by the Tamil Community. Currently Tamil refugees are escaping from Sri Lanka by boat to Australia due to large scale human rights abuses against Sri Lanka's Tamil population.
RAC believes that asylum seekers are not illegal and have a right to have their claims assessed immediately. Mandatory detention is a cruel and unnecessary policy that the Australian people disagree with. The overwhelming majority of asylum seekers qualify for refugee status under international law.
Refugee Vigil - Melbourne, Speaker: Theo McKay
Refugee Vigil - Melbourne, Speaker: Kanchana Senthuran
